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Measuring, Comparing, and Optimizing Disk Performance on VPS Hosting
Author:
Christopher | 14 Apr 2025
The performance of virtual servers is significantly influenced by the performance of the underlying hard drive systems. Especially with data-intensive workloads, the speed of the storage determines whether applications run smoothly or stall. To assess the performance of a VPS hosting, measuring hard drive performance is essential. This involves analysing both the write and read speeds per second, as well as the number of Input/Output Operations per second (IOPS) – two key metrics that provide deep insights into the behaviour of storage systems. In addition to established tools for measurement, various approaches are available to specifically improve hard drive performance.
Hard Drive Performance as a Critical Factor in VPS Hosting Performance
The disk performance is one of the key factors influencing the overall performance of a Virtual Private Server (VPS hosting). Especially in virtualised environments where multiple users share the physical hardware, the disk can quickly become a bottleneck. Applications that handle many small files or continuously access data – such as databases, web applications, or CI/CD pipelines – are particularly dependent on fast read and write processes. In addition to the raw transfer rate, the number of Input/Output Operations per Second (IOPS) is crucial as it indicates the system's ability to efficiently handle many simultaneous accesses. Inadequate disk performance can result in longer loading times, delays in script execution, or sluggish response times for entire applications. To properly assess and optimise the performance of your VPS hosting, special attention should be paid to the storage component.
Tip: Also, learn about the CPU performance of VPS hosting
Difference between Input/Output Operations per Second (IOPS) and Write and Read Speed per Second
IOPS and write/read speed are two different but closely related metrics for evaluating disk performance.
IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second) indicates how many input and output operations a storage system can process within one second. It focuses on the number of individual operations rather than the amount of data, regardless of whether 4 KB or 1 MB is being read or written. This value is particularly relevant for applications with many small accesses, such as databases or log files.
The write and read speed per second, usually expressed in Megabytes per second (MB/s), measures the actual amount of data that can be written or read per second. This metric is especially important for large, contiguous files – such as copying large media files or loading extensive software packages.
In summary:
- IOPS measures the number of operations → important for many small accesses.
- MB/s measures the data volume per second → important for large, sequential accesses.
An efficient system should ideally deliver good values in both disciplines – high IOPS for responsive applications and high MB/s for fast data throughput.
Tools and Methods for Performance Analysis of the Hard Drive on VPS Hosting
To accurately assess the hard drive performance of a VPS hosting, various tools and testing methods are available. They provide important metrics such as the maximum transfer rate, the number of I/O operations per second (IOPS), and the average access time. Depending on the use case, different measurement methods are appropriate.
iotop
For a quick overview of current read and write rates, the command-line tool iostat is useful, which is part of the sysstat package. It provides real-time information on the utilization of block devices and shows how heavily the hard drive is currently being used. In addition, iotop offers a live view of processes on the server that are accessing the hard drive intensively.
Example evaluation of disk measurement with iostat
A practical use case for analysing disk performance on a VPS hosting is evaluating the measurement values provided by iostat. The Device line provides a quick overview of the activity of available storage media. Particularly relevant are the columns:
- tps (transactions per second)
- kB_read/s (read throughput)
- kB_wrtn/s (write throughput)
- kB_dscd/s (discard/trim data for SSDs).
In the example measurement on an Ubuntu VPS hosting, the result shows a typical load situation without any anomalies:
| Device | tps | Read | Write | Notes |
| sda | 1.36 | 8.88 kB/s | 21.97 kB/s | Normal, low usage on the main hard drive |
| loop0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Temporary system mounts, e.g. snapshots |
| sr0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Virtual CD-ROM drive |
It is noticeable that the main drive (sda) with a transaction rate of 1.36 I/O operations per second and very low read and write rates is only minimally utilized. This indicates a low current system load and shows that the hard drive is not a bottleneck in this situation.
Other devices like loop0 and sr0 are present due to system requirements but do not cause significant I/O load.
Especially in VPS hosting with shared storage, iostat can provide important insights in high load situations, indicating whether a high number of transactions or slow throughput rates suggest an overload of the storage system. For administrators and users of virtual servers, regularly analysing these values is a simple and effective method to realistically assess the performance of the storage system.
ioping
To measure access time, ioping is used. It works similarly to a network ping but is aimed at the storage system. Especially for database workloads that involve many small read and write operations, ioping provides valuable insights into potential delays.
Example evaluation of disk measurement with ioping
The tool ioping is suitable for assessing the responsiveness of the storage system, conducting targeted measurements of access time to the disk. In a brief test on the examined VPS hosting, the measured values ranged between 0.96 and 1.88 milliseconds per access to 4-kilobyte blocks. The average latency was 1.19 milliseconds, indicating an SSD-based storage solution, which is quite common for typical entry-level VPS offerings.
| Indicator | Measurement | Evaluation |
| Minimum Latency | 0.96 ms | Good (normal for VPS with SSD) |
| Average Latency | 1.19 ms | Solid Performance |
| Maximum Latency | 1.88 ms | Non-critical |
| IOPS Value (Test) | 838 | Acceptable for Random Read |
The results of the measurement with ioping show an average access time of around 1.2 milliseconds. This value is typical for VPS hosting with SSD storage and falls within a practical range. While dedicated NVMe SSDs in high-performance environments can achieve even faster sub-millisecond values, the measured result provides a solid foundation for web applications, small databases, and everyday server workloads.
fio
For synthetic load tests and targeted benchmarks, the tool fio is the standard in practice. It allows the simulation of various access patterns – from sequential writing of large files to random reads with small block sizes. This enables the realistic replication of typical workloads and evaluation of I/O performance under load conditions.
Analysis of fio measurement for disk performance
In this example, the benchmark tool fio was used to test the read performance of the VPS hosting. A random read scenario (randread) with a block size of 4 kilobytes was employed – a typical scenario to evaluate the memory performance with many small accesses. This test procedure simulates realistic conditions, such as those encountered in databases or web applications with many small files.
| Indicator | Measurement | Significance |
| IOPS | 501 | Number of read operations per second |
| Throughput | 2007 KiB/s (≈ 2 MB/s) | Amount of data read per second |
| Average Latency | approx. 7.9 milliseconds | Time taken for a read access to be responded to |
| 99.9th Percentile Latency | approx. 12 milliseconds | 99.9% of all accesses were below this delay |
| Maximum Latency | 214 milliseconds | An outlier in access duration |
The results indicate relatively low storage performance – typical for many VPS hosting with shared storage.
- An IOPS value of around 500 is at the lower end of what is acceptable for SSD-based hosting in productive applications with many accesses.
- The data throughput of around 2 MB/s is also low, suggesting that the disk or storage system is heavily virtualised and shared among multiple customers.
- The average latency of nearly 8 milliseconds is still practical, but significantly higher than with dedicated SSD systems.
- The high Util value of 99.72% in the Disk stats also indicates that the disk was almost fully utilised during the test.
The results of the fio benchmark illustrate how much the performance of VPS hosting can be limited by the storage infrastructure used. Especially in virtualised environments with shared storage, IOPS values in the range of 500 to 1000 and data throughputs of a few megabytes per second clearly indicate an entry-level solution with limited reserves. For data-intensive applications, it is therefore recommended to use servers with dedicated SSD resources or optimised storage backends.
For a comprehensive evaluation of hard drive performance, it is recommended to use a combination of multiple tools and tests. This allows different aspects of storage performance to be assessed, providing a realistic evaluation of the performance of a VPS hosting.
Hard Drive Performance of VPS Hosting: Testing with fio
To realistically and comparably evaluate the hard drive performance of VPS hosting, we use fio (Flexible I/O Tester) in our VPS hosting tests. This benchmark tool is part of the YABS (Yet Another Bench Script) test script and simulates different access patterns on the storage system. It performs random read and write operations with small block sizes, creating a practical scenario that particularly stresses data-intensive applications like databases. The resulting metrics, including IOPS (Input/Output Operations per Second), throughput, and latencies, are then incorporated into our performance evaluation of the VPS hosting.
What Hard Drive Benchmarks on VPS Hosting Reveal – and What They Don't
Hard drive benchmarks such as fio or ioping provide important insights into the performance of the storage system on a VPS hosting. High IOPS values and short access times indicate a fast SSD or NVMe base, which is particularly advantageous for data-intensive applications.
However, the measurement results are always snapshots under specific test conditions. Especially in shared hosting environments, performance can vary depending on the time of day or the load from other customers. Benchmarks therefore show the technically possible performance spectrum but do not guarantee consistently high performance in real-world operations.
What values are considered good for disk performance?
The following benchmarks for disk read/write speed and Input/Output Operations per Second (IOPS) are considered good, average, or poor:
The benchmark for disk read/write speed should be over 1500MB/s to be considered good. Values between 1500MB/s and 1000MB/s are rated as average. Any values below 1000MB/s are considered poor.
The benchmark for disk Input/Output Operations should be over 25,000k IOPS to be considered good. Values between 25,000 IOPS and 15,000k IOPS are rated as average. Any values below 15,000k IOPS are considered poor.
Find out which VPS performs best in our disk performance test:
The fastest providers from our vServer test
| Provider ↕ | Single Core ↕ | Multi Core ↕ | Read Write ↕ | IOPS ↕ | Overall Score ↕ |
|---|
Optimisation: Getting more performance out of the VPS
Optimising disk performance on a VPS hosting is often limited, especially with shared storage. However, targeted measures can help improve performance significantly or avoid bottlenecks.
Some approaches to optimisation include:
- Customise File System Options: Using the noatime option can prevent unnecessary write accesses to the file system, as access times are no longer stored.
- Utilise Caching Strategically: Database and web server software such as MySQL or NGINX offer extensive cache functions that reduce disk accesses and improve response times.
- Minimise Swap Usage: Sufficiently large RAM capacity prevents the system from resorting to slow swap memory.
- Optimise Processes and Cron Jobs: Regularly running Cron jobs should be scheduled to avoid peak load times.
- Choose Higher-Tier Plans: VPS hosting offers with guaranteed SSD or NVMe resources often provide significantly better I/O performance than entry-level models.
- Consider Provider Selection: Specialised hosts sometimes offer plans with IOPS guarantees or storage tuning – ideal for data-intensive applications.
For particularly high demands, ultimately consider switching to a dedicated server with assured resources. This is the only way to reliably and consistently maintain disk performance at a consistently high level.
Conclusion: Assessing Disk Performance of VPS Hosting Correctly
The performance of the disk is a crucial component for the overall performance of a VPS hosting – especially for data-intensive applications. At the same time, the storage area is one of the components whose actual speed can vary the most in virtualised environments. Factors such as the storage technology used, the virtualisation layer, and the load from other customers can significantly affect the measurable values.
Benchmark tools like fio, ioping, or iostat provide important comparison values and highlight typical strengths and weaknesses of the storage system. However, they always represent snapshots and cannot guarantee that the values obtained will be consistently achievable under everyday loads.
For a realistic assessment of hard drive performance, the results should always be considered in conjunction with your own usage scenario. Those who rely on fast I/O access regularly should specifically focus on dedicated resources, SSD or NVMe storage, and fair storage allocation when selecting a hosting plan. Additionally, workload-optimised settings at the system and application level can help maximise the performance of your Dedicated Server.
Only those who measure storage performance strategically, place it in the right context, and optimise it when necessary can identify and avoid bottlenecks early.
The fastest providers from our vServer test
| Provider ↕ | Single Core ↕ | Multi Core ↕ | Read Write ↕ | IOPS ↕ | Overall Score ↕ |
|---|
Our article is based on our own experiences and research, as well as information from external sources.
Sources & further reading on the topic:
https://fio.readthedocs.io/en/latest/fio_doc.html (Benchmark Software)
Image credit:
kp yamu Jayanath on Pixabay
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